Ghost of Christmas Present
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The Ghost of Christmas Present is a character in one of the best-known works of the English novelist Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.
The Ghost of Christmas Present was the second of the three spirits (after the visitation by Jacob Marley) that haunted the miser Ebenezer Scrooge, in order to prompt him to repent. It transported him around the city, showing him scenes of festivity and also deprivation that were happening as they watched. Among those they visited were Scrooge's nephew, and the family of his clerk, Bob Cratchit. The spirit also shares a vision of Tiny Tim's crutch, carefully preserved by the fireplace. Scrooge asks if Tim will die, and, quick to use Scrooge's past unkind comments against him, suggests "they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population" — reflecting Scrooge's earlier comment to two charitable solicitors. But Scrooge is disgusted at his own words and is concerned for Tiny Tim and his family.
The spirit also reveals to Scrooge two emaciated children, clinging to his robes, and names the boy as Ignorance and the girl as Want. The spirit warns Scrooge, "Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased.", underscoring the book's social message.
According to Dickens' novel, the Ghost of Christmas Present appears to Scrooge as "a jolly Giant" with dark brown curls. It wears a fur-lined green robe and on its head a holly wreath set with shining icicles. He carried a large torch, made to resemble a Cornucopia, and appeared accompanied by a great feast. He was given to outbursts of laughter. He could change his size to fit in any space.
The Ghost of Christmas Present states that he has had "more than eighteen hundred" brothers. Further, he will only exist on Earth for a single year's Christmas holidays. As he shows Scrooge scenes during the entire twelve days of the Christmas holidays, he grows older and he disappears at the stroke of midnight on Twelfth Night.
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[edit] References
Hearn, Michael P. 1989. The Annotated Christmas Carol / A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens; illustrated by John Leach; with an introduction, notes and bibliography by Michael Patrick Hearn. Avenel Books. New York. ISBN: 0-517-68780-1.
